Most of the world’s leading nations are bound by a legally enforceable climate agreement.
When President Trump took office, he wasted no time signing a series of executive orders, and pulling the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement was among his first moves.
So when he did it again during his second term, it wasn’t exactly shocking.
Yet, with the world grappling with increasingly extreme weather patterns—storms, floods, fires, and heatwaves—triggered in part by rising global temperatures, it’s hard to ignore the broader impact of such a decision. Lives are being lost, and communities torn apart, and many will undoubtedly question why the U.S. walked away from an agreement that many see as the planet’s last, best hope.
The Paris Agreement, which became a global milestone in the fight against climate change, aims to limit global warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, a threshold that experts say must not be breached to avoid widespread devastation. But the latest warning from the UN is clear: current global efforts are falling far short, and we’re heading toward a future where temperatures could rise by more than 3C by the end of the century.
So, what exactly is the Paris Agreement, what has been done in the years since its adoption, and what does all this mean for the upcoming COP29?
What is the Paris Agreement?
The Paris Agreement, adopted by 194 parties in 2015, is a legally binding international treaty designed to combat climate change. It came into effect the following year.
At its core, the agreement’s goal is simple: to curb global warming by keeping temperatures “well below” 2C and ideally, below 1.5C compared to pre-industrial levels. Scientists selected this target because anything beyond this threshold is expected to bring catastrophic impacts—things like widespread flooding, deadly heatwaves, and crippling droughts.
In addition to this central promise, the agreement also lays out financial commitments from wealthier nations, aimed at helping poorer countries transition to cleaner energy and adapt to climate change. Another key promise is to reduce emissions to net-zero between 2050 and 2100.
What made the Paris Agreement so significant was that it marked the first time nearly every country on Earth came together in a shared effort to tackle the climate crisis—a historic moment in global cooperation.
What Have Countries Done Since the Paris Agreement?
As our understanding of climate science deepens and clean technology evolves, countries are expected to raise their game. The Paris Agreement isn’t static—it operates on a five-year cycle that encourages countries to ramp up their efforts, setting more ambitious targets as time goes on.
Since 2020, nations have been submitting their climate action plans, known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs), which detail how they plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions. With each submission, the expectation is that countries will commit to more aggressive action.
The annual COP meetings, where countries gather to discuss their progress and plan next steps, have become key moments for charting the course toward meeting the Paris Agreement’s targets. But despite the rhetoric and the political agreements, the progress on the ground has been disappointing.
Just last month, the UN reported that the world is on track to see temperatures rise by a catastrophic 3.1C by 2100, far exceeding the goals of the Paris Agreement. The latest assessment of countries’ climate plans revealed a sobering reality: the current national policies won’t be nearly enough to avoid disastrous warming.
And on the same day, the World Meteorological Organization shared the chilling news that greenhouse gas levels had reached record highs in 2023.
The path ahead is fraught with challenges, and the question remains: are nations willing to make the tough decisions needed to prevent a climate catastrophe?